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Rhine Confederation

 

Contents

The Confederation of the Rhine

The alleged Flag of the Rhine Confederation

Meaning/Origin of the Flag

Member states of the Rhine Confederation

Map


The Confederation of the Rhine"

The Rhine Confederation was foundet on the 12th of July in 1806 by the wish of Napoléon I. Concerned were initially 16 German states. Those leave the Holy Roman Empire of German Nation on the 1st of August in 1806, and recognized the French predominance, and joined a kind of alliance with France. For its wars had the 16 states to put troops and became compensated for that with expansions of area and an enhancement of the nobility title of the monarch. After the foundation of the Rhine Confederation the German emperor Franz II. of Habsburg layed down the German emperor's crown on the 6th of August in 1806. Therewith expired the Holy Roman Empire of German Nation. After the defeat of Prussia in the battle near Jena and Auerstedt on the 14th of October in 1806 was evident that Napoleón was not to stop and all middle and north German states joined the Rhine Confederation just as the Electorate of Saxony and the Episcopate of Wuerzburg. Finally the Rhine Confederation consisted in 36 states and was leaded by the prince primate Karl Theodor of Dalberg, the last elector (archbishop) of Mainz and arch-chancellor of the Holy Roman Empire. Only Austria, Prussia, the Electorate of Hessen and Brunswick did not join the Rhine Confederation. The Rhine Confederation dissolved itself more and more in the course of the liberation wars and ends finaly after the Battle of Nations near Leipzig (16th till 18th of October in 1813).

Source, by: Volker Preuß

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Flag

Flagge Fahne flag Rheinbund Rhine Confederation of the Rhine Confédération du Rhin
1806–1813,
The alleged Flag of the Rhine Confederation

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Meaning/Origin of the Flag

It is not known exactly whether the Rhine League had its own common flag at all. The source for the green-white-blue flag, which can be found everywhere, cannot be determined. The Treaty of Confederation, the Rhine Confederation Act, does not comment on any common symbolism.

On 29th of March in 2023, it was spread in a Youtube video that the alleged flag of the Confederation of the Rhine was shown here was first and published on these pages as the flag of the Confederation of the Rhine. This is not true. The fact is, that the Confederation of the Rhine most probably did not have a flag. This green-white-blue flag was taken over in a way that is no longer comprehensible from a now unknown source on these pages, but was always described as the "alleged flag of the Confederation of the Rhine" due to the improbability of the existence of a flag of the Confederation of the Rhine. The facts speak against this flag. 1st Error: Presentation of the flag on these pages without reference to the source, 2nd error: Adoption as unverified fact.

Source: Volker Preuß

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Member states of the Rhine Confederation


Founding members (on 12th of July in 1806):

Kingdom of Bavaria

Kingdom of Wuerttemberg

Electorate of Baden

Grand Duchy of Berg

Duchy of Arenberg-Meppen

Landgraviate of Hesse-Darmstadt

Principality of Aschaffenburg

Principality of Regensburg

Principality of Nassau-Usingen

Principality of Nassau-Weilburg

Principality of Hohenzollern-Hechingen

Principality of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen

Principality of Salm-Salm

Principality of Salm-Kyrburg

Principality of Isenburg-Birstein

Principality of Liechtenstein

Principality von der Leyen


Membership on 26th of September in 1806:

Grand Duchy of Wuerzburg


Membership on 11th of December in 1806:

Kingdom of Saxony


Membership on 15th of December in 1806:

Duchy of Saxony-Weimar-Eisenach

Duchy of Saxony-Gotha-Altenburg

Duchy of Saxony-Meiningen

Duchy of Saxony-Hildburghausen

Duchy of Saxony-Coburg-Saalfeld


Membership on 18th of April in 1807:

Duchy of Anhalt-Dessau

Duchy of Anhalt-Bernburg

Duchy of Anhalt-Koethen

Principality of Lippe-Detmold

Principality of Schaumburg-Lippe

Principality of Reuss Senior Line

Principality of Reuss-Schleiz

Principality of Reuss-Lobenstein

Principality of Reuss-Ebersdorf

Principality of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt

Principality of Schwarzburg-Sondershausen

Principality of Waldeck


Membership on 7th of December in 1807:

Kingdom of Westphalia


Membership on 10th of February in 1808:

Duchy of Mecklenburg-Strelitz


Membership on 22nd of March in 1808:

Duchy of Mecklenburg-Schwerin


Membership on 14th of October in 1808:

Duchy of Oldenburg


Membership on 19th of February in 1810:

Grand Duchy of Frankfurt


Exits from the Rhine Confederation:

• 30th of Aug. 1806 Principality of Nassau-Usingen (merged in Nassau)
• 30th of Aug. 1806 Principality of Nassau-Weilburg (merged in Nassau)
• 16th of Feb. 1810 Principality of Aschaffenburg, (annexed to Grand Duchy of Frankfurt)
• 22nd of May 1810 Principality of Regensburg, (annexed to Bavaria)
• 13th of Dec. 1810 Principality of Salm-Salm (annexed by France)
• 13th of Dec. 1810 Principality of Salm-Kyrburg (annexed by France)
• 13th of Dec. 1810 Duchy of Oldenburg (annexed by France)
• 11th of Feb. 1811 Duchy of Arenberg-Meppen (annexed by France)

Source, by: Wikipedia (D)

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Map


Source: Hand-Atlas für die Geschichte des Mittelalters und die neueren Zeit von Spruner and Menke


The map shows the Rhine Confederation ca. 1810 within a yellow border.

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